Wow, that sounds really difficult. Bear in mind that fans running at 800 rpm are audible for most SPCR members so you might be perfectly content with a fan running at 300-500 rpm. Have you tried that before? SPCR just reviewed two fanless CPU coolers. One from Silverstone and one from Thermalright. ...

MikeC wrote:Regarding the 65W Trinity parts -- apparently in short supply, but AMD reps say they will try to get them for us... hopefully sooner than later.

I am really looking forward for that review!

My system uses the same components as my previous system. Only the case and suspension system has changed. My previous built (my thoughts about the components can also be read in this link): http://www.silentpcreview.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=64451 My current built: CPU: AMD Athlon II x3 425 C...

1) First, let me say that you don't need 600W. Find a quality PSU with 400-500W and you should be fine. Other than the Seasonic G550, there's also the Seasonic X series which are semi-passive, i.e. the fan only spins up at a certain power consumption. These are quality PSU's. Kingwin also makes good...

I'd go for the AMD then, since you'll primarily utilize its GPU-power. Streaming videos don't stress the CPU by much so the power consumption should be somewhat equal to the efficient Intel CPU's and AMD motherboards usually have more features than Intel motherboards. RAM is so cheap these days that...

If the system crashes it might also be because of the hard drive or the PSU. If you want the best CPU for the money, then go for Intel. I'm not saying that AMD is bad, though. The FX-series is bad (AMD high-end CPU's) but AMD makes great APU's that are able to compete with Intel. But you need a high...

These are the CPU coolers that come to mind for your particular situation: Scythe Samurai ZZ Scythe Big Shuriken Rev. B Noctua NH-L12 I don't know whether these CPU coolers will fit or not, though I would be quite sure that the Samurai ZZ would fit. It fits on a m-ITX board where the PCI-e slot is v...

Power Supply: You could save some money by buying a cheaper and still quiet PSU. You can buy a Nexus NX5000 (received Editor's choice some years ago) and save approx. 200 kr (30 USD perhaps). It's very quiet, and it's small too. Processor: I think she'd be satisfied easily by a much cheaper CPU. Non...

Nice indeed. I'm a bit sad that almost no Xigmatek CPU coolers can be found where I live. Also, the Arctic Cooling fans looks nice considering their price and low starting range. Was it not for my SlipStream 800 rpm's which were on a discount (bought for approx. 7 USD each) I would probably have wen...

Why not go for 2 x 4 GB? It only costs a bit more and it is much easier to sell once DDR4 goes mainstream. HDD: as CA_Steve says, go for WD Green. They are generally the most quiet hard drives according to SPCR. If you want to go for the 2,5" HD then the Scorpio Blue most have the following model na...

I personally don't mind paying a reasonable extra for longer warranties, especially a five year one. Longevity is good for everyone's sake: it's stability for me, value for later owners, spares natural resources and gives manufacturers both a chance for healthy profits and an incentive to actually ...

I agree with Das_Saunamies and edh about m-ATX. It's much more practical in real life and it's usually a bit cheaper. But I know of no mother boards with Fan Xpert2. But Fan Xpert and Fan Xpert+ are also very decent at controlling fan speeds.

What about a Scythe Mugen 3? I even think that a Scythe Katana 3 can cope with the i7 2700 since this CPU has the same TDP as the one that SPCR used when they reviewed the Katana 3. http://www.silentpcreview.com/article957-page4.html Have in mind that the CPU you have is very efficient and therefore...

Motherboard: I'd go for the ASUS V because of FanXpert 2 (unless it cost much more than the Gigabyte). The P8Z77-V has FanXpert 2 so there's no need to buy the "Pro". SSD: I find them both reliable so just pick the cheapest one. You won't be able to notice the difference in performance anyway so thi...

Having the right components (i.e. quiet components) is key to having a quiet computer. So you have to consider whether changing the case is the best way to reduce the overall noise level. Since the only add-on cards you have is a sound card and a video card, why not consider a mATX case? (unless you...

Mettyx wrote: Do Nvidia cards even support 2 monitors at the same time?

All contemporary video cards support at least two screens. Even a five year old AMD motherboard with a Nvidia chipset that I've owned supports two screens. So you have nothing to worry about.

I'm trying to decide between the X-560 ($125) and the G550 ($100). Any input? If you demand absolute silence, then you should pay the extra 25 USD for the silence at low loads. But if you're content with the noise level for the G550 then go for that. The warranty period is the same though I've hear...

The Corsair VX450W has a five year warranty, and sive you've never pushed the PSU much in that period, I think it's safe to assume that you can use the PSU at least a year or two more. The PSU should be able to handle the load of the i5-3570 and the Geforce 660. Why not let the Corsair VX450W run a ...

It's not available in Denmark yet. I really hope that it will be, though I would prefer to buy the 450W because it's modular.

RAM prices are really low right now. In Denmark, I can buy 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) for under 100 USD! So perhaps spend the extra cash for this? Besides that, and the comments made by Ralf Hutter and CA_Steve, the parts look really good.

1) You can use a Zalman FanMate, control the fan speed via the motherboard, or you can use a 12-to-5 V resistor like this one: http://quietpc.co.uk/resistors Some SPCR users still think the fan is too loud when undervolted even more than the two-switch controller 2) The only effective method that I ...

Connected my new G-360 and it's on! It's completely silent on my desk, very close to me. I have my other case fans very undervolted, and I cannot hear the PSU over them, even when I had my ear right next to it. Very happy right now :) It's powering an i7 3770 (undevolted and slightly overclocked) a...

A Ivy bridge quad core dissipates 77 W. An Arctic Cooling Alpine Pro 11 can easily cool that CPU very quietly. I've had no issues with my Alpine 64 Pro (64 means for AMD). It cools my triple core Athlon II x3 425 which has a TDP of 95W, and built on a 45 nm technology, so it should in theory dissipa...

The Seasonic G360 is more than enough. I'd even say that your system won't even draw half that wattage unless you intend to overclock.

The only minor quibble with the G360 is that it isn't modular. But besides that it seems like an awesome PSU.

Wow, that new test system must had cost a lot of money! I hope SPCR received some of the products for free or perhaps SPCR had the products lying around. Would it be too demanding for the reviewer to manually undervolt the fan via a simple piece of software like MSI Afterburner? When SPCR reviews CP...

I've had no issues with running two fans from a motherboard fan header using a splitter. I've even had a 12-to-7 V resistor between the header and the splitter: Header - resistor - splitter - two fans. The only issue with this setup was the fan speed reading which would sometimes read 10,000 rpm. B...

I'd go for 400-500 W, though I'm not quite sure what impact the OC'ed CPU has on the power consumption. You should also have in mind that quality impacts the longevity of a PSU a lot. I'd rather go with a 400W Seasonic than a 600W noname PSU.

Good picks. The Thermalright Macho doesn't have a good stock fan, so you may need to change the fan.

If you are not comfortable with the Seasonic X, Kingwin makes som premium PSU's too. Two of their PSU's have received favourable reviews here at SPCR.

If I did go with the solo what fans would you recommend for the front of it? I ordered the power supply yesterday and I appreciate the advice I would advice you to buy Scythe Slipstream 120 mm (500 or 800 rpm, depending on how tolerable you are to noise). They can run at very low speeds (500 rpm is...

The P280 is a good candidate (SPCR has reviewed the case). You should also look at the cases from Fractal Design. The R4 holds eight hard drives and the Mini (mATX case) holds six hard drives. The latter has also been reviewed by SPCR.